When I started this blog, I wondered about which comments I should allow. I certainly welcome thoughtful and reasonable comments and insights, even if they are not in agreement with my own. But I just deleted several comments that I found irrational, combative, and generally abusive. If you don't agree about an issue, let's discuss the issue, but to just blast a slew of hateful comments against the Bible and God and social conservatism all in one fell swoop is difficult to rationally discuss. Actually, it's rather stupid to even try. A person like that cannot and will not be able to see the truth. It's casting your pearls before swine (Matthew 7:6) to use another pig analogy as has been used of late! :-) As Matthew 10:14 says, "And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet." Jesus spoke in great detail about those who could not hear the truth and that was because they "are of their father the devil, and the lusts of their father they will do."
People don't realize that when they are choosing to not believe in God, they are choosing to believe in another god. It's interesting that they cannot see the truth in this. How can any rational person not see this? How can it be that the person himself is the author of truth for himself? It will always conflict with the "truth" of another, so how can both be true? It can't! Simple as that. There has to be a true author of truth; there has to be a basis for real truth or there is no truth at all. Obviously, a belief there is no truth at all would be chaos. So who is the real author of truth? The One who has been tested and challenged throughout eternity and still prevails. I know where truth comes from because I know this author of truth. I trust Him for all knowledge and wisdom. I trust Him with everything. I can tell you how to beat the blues. I can tell you how to be rid of money troubles. I can tell you how to be joyful in the midst of a troubled world. It's not about a secret formula; it's about a special relationship with the Lord of your life. And only someone who has experienced it will be able to understand, but it's as true as gravity - perhaps hard to explain but just as true. So to the person who made all the comments I just deleted, just because you can't see or believe in gravity, it's still true!
15 comments:
Ok, just tell me how millenia old myths and superstitions can be considered "truth"???
Science is truth. It's based on EVIDENCE, not old myths and superstitions. Show me one ounce of evidence (not including an old book of myths) for your Christian god.
It just boggles my mind, I can't understand how people blindly accept old archaic myths from a primitive culture, yet reject modern scientific facts. It just makes no sense at all. Please exlpain it to me.....
I agree that when you choose not to believe in the ridiculous Christian god that you MAY choose another one.
Sorry, but the god I believe in doesn't order the murder and enslavement of thousands of women and children. The god I believe in doesn't burn people forever simply for being raised in another faith.
Sorry, but the god I believe in doesn't require "belief" and "worship" and "glorification". The bible's version in an insult to such an awesome being.
Christianity tries to promote belife out of fear, fear of burning and screaming in agony forever for not believing. How utterly ridiculous. Why would anyone believe such nonsense. The ultimate being of the Universe doesn't torture people FOREVER. Get a brain.
By promoting old myths and superstitious nonsense, you are perpetuating a belief in archaic myths and in my opinion, you are doing a disservice to humanity. Not intentionally I guess, but what you are doing is wrong. It keeps people mired down in myth and superstion, unable to climb out of the hole of their fantasy world. People need to rise up and see the truth, SCIENCE is the truth! Reality. Not fantasy. You are trying to pull people back down into the mire of fairytales and fantasy.
Use logic and reason, look at the scientific evidence, look at this wonderful Universe, how can you attribute it to an archaic old invisible supernatural man in the sky??? Give me a break.
Okay, if you sincerely want to have this discussion, let's try it for a bit. Your comments are rather broad, but I'll try to address them briefly. The fact is, science hasn't been able to prove creation of the world or of human life. There are only unproven theories. Darwin himself wrote extensively disproving his own theories, but modern science chooses to ignore those that don't fit into its preferred course. I look at this wonderful universe and at the intricacies of life and can't imagine how you can logically think it just happened. A creator is the only thing that makes sense!
No other book in the history of the world has been tested and challenged like the Bible. The God of the Bible has withstood the tests. There are other history books of the time that support the facts written of in the Bible. Many of the books are written by eye-witnesses of Jesus Christ who died believing He was who He said He was and who He said God was. They wouldn't have died for a lie. And by the way, do you realize that the ancient letters of the Bible spoke of the curvature of the earth before scientific man knew the earth was round? Did you know the Old Testament Jews lived by dietary and cleanliness laws provided by God that enabled them to live longer and healthier lives than the average people? There is science in the Bible.
The God of the Bible is loving and forgiving and oh-so-patient. Any time He punished, it was always to bring people back to Him, because He is the the only source of life and knowledge and wisdom. It was for their own good and He loved them so much, He wanted what was best for them - as is the case with a parent. I suspect the torture you speak about is everlasting hell which is what you get when you don't have everlasting life with God; it's an infinity without God; that's hell and that would be torture. I wonder if you have ever read the Bible or have only taken scriptures out of context to form your opinions?
Who is the god you believe in?
Sorry, your facts are wrong. Darwin never wrote anything disproving his own theories. Never happened. Show me a quote, give me your evidence. Not true.
Evolution is a scientific fact. It hasn't really been considered a theory in a long time. But in any case, it's a "Scientific" theory, one definition of which is: "A group of statments that explain the observable facts." The observable facts are that life evolves, the "theory" part is the details of the mechanism for evolution, there are still a very few small details that are debated but that's all.
The god of the bible withstood the tests??? Don't make me laugh. It's just so OBVIOUSLY old myths and nothing more. There is absolutely no proof whatever for your god outside of that old book of myths. And an old book of myths is proof of nothing except for the gullability of the average person.
And wrong again, the bible says nothing about the curvature of the Earth. What chapter and verse is that? Ha, ridiculous.
I've read the bible from cover to cover, both the old and new testaments. I found them to be interesting, nice stories in some cases but just old creation myths and other superstitious nonsense.
You haven't addressed Numbers:31. Where your god tells the Israelites to murder and enslave thousands of women and children. How could your "loving and forgiving" god do such a thing? How would the world react to something like that today? Let's say the Israelis murder and enslave thousands of women and children and then say "Oh...but it's okay, god told us to do it." Heh heh...yeah right. Can't you see how utterly ridiculous that is????
And where are the rivers turning into blood or wine today? Why isn't your silly god flying around in his cloud and pillar of fire today? Where are the burning bushes, the manna from heaven, sticks turning to snakes, etc. etc. etc. I'll tell you. Nowhere. They're just old myths. Ridiculous.
I believe in something like Albert Einstein believed. He is quoted as saying that he believed in something like "Spinoza's god". Look it up. But I certainly don't believe in an invisible supernatural Santa Claus in the sky that orders the murder and enslavement of thousands of children. I don't believe in an ogre that want's to be "worshipped" and praised and glorified. The bible makes him out to be arrogant and vain and jealous and to have all kinds of other petty hangups. Give me a break! Why would anyone with 3 working brain cells think the ultimate being of the Universe would be like that!????!!!
Sorry, but all your quotes and sayings from the bible just sound like so much "blah blah blah ooga booga." Not much different that a witch doctor chanting.
You are a Christian because you were born and raised in the West and received the indoctrination and brain-washing of Western beliefs. If you had been born and raised in China, you would believe just as strongly in the Bhuddism myth, if you had been raised in India, you would believe just as strongly in the Hindu myth, etc. etc. etc. What you believe is a result of your upbringing, being brain-washed practically since birth to believe what our culture believes. That kind of indoctrination is hard to overcome.
I believed that nonsense until I was in my mid to late teens. Then my intelligence kicked in (I have an IQ of 148 and was a member of Mensa for several years) also my interest in science showed me how ridiculous Christianity is.
I understand the attraction of it though, human being seem to have a need for a father-figure to comfort them and to make everything better.
As for the Universe "just happening" what about your god "just happening"? Where did your invisible, supernatural man in the sky come from? Did he creat himself out of nothing? The bible says he always existed. If you can believe that then there is no difference in believing that the Universe always existed. If you really know anything about religion, you will have heard the term "First Cause". What caused the Universe to come into being? If your reply is "the Christian god" then what caused him to come into being? And what caused whatever caused him to come into being to come into being?? Etc. etc. ad infinitum.
Sorry, I'll take modern science over archaic myths any day.
You sure are getting pretty nasty, Talon. Why are you so offended by this that you have to start insulting people? If you want to discuss something you could at least do it politely.
I don't find Christianity to be at odds with science. In fact, as Isaac Newton, Thomas Aquinas, and many other great fathers of science have believed, science and religion support each other. God created science and science glorifies God. A symbiotic relationship, if you will.
Evolution does not disprove the existence of a creator, not even Darwin believed that. In the conclusion of The Origin of Species Darwin states:
"I see no good reasons why the views given in this volume should shock the religious feelings of any one. It is satisfactory, as showing how transient such impressions are, to remember that the greatest discovery ever made by man, namely, the law of the attraction of gravity, was also attacked by Leibnitz, "as subversive of natural, and inferentially of revealed, religion." A celebrated author and divine has written to me that "he has gradually learned to see that it is just as noble a conception of the Deity to believe that He created a few original forms capable of self- development into other and needful forms, as to believe that He required a fresh act of creation to supply the voids caused by the action of His laws."
It is perfectly plausible that God created the universe in the Big Bang. Perhaps He established a universe of laws and balance, one which could grow and evolve into what we know today. God sets the universe in motion and lets it take its course, the ultimate ant farm.
Science and religion have never been at odds with each other, Men of science and men of religion have. Every now and then a great man of both science and religion such as Newton or Aquinas, or even Darwin comes along and shows just how well the two can support each other.
Maybe you don't believe in a creator, but that does not make it foolish to do so. I think we can both agree that the fathers of modern science had more than "three working brain cells" and many of them were devout Christians. Somewhere, at some time, something had to appear. Whether it was the universe or the creator of the universe? We don't know. Scientists generally accept that the universe had a beginning. Maybe that beginning was the original creation by a creator? That really doesn't seem so farfetched to me.
I chose to respond to your comments because I couldn't help but wonder why you would take such interest in a little old blog that obviously doesn't get much attention, and thought perhaps you truly wanted to understand why I believe the way I do. I really wish you wouldn't tackle so many issues at one time as I really don't have the time to properly address them all, but I will do my best this time. BUT I will ask you to be respectful, please. I will respect your opinions and I will ask that you not make belittling comments about my Lord. I am not interested in exchanging barbs and insults that get us nowhere. That said, let me address your comments:
Okay, perhaps I did misspeak when I said Darwin DISPROVED his own theory, but he did write extensively criticizing his theory and questioning whether or not it could be true because of certain observances he had, and I just find it rather amusing that those are never mentioned in textbooks. He knew it was only a theory and not fact. Interestingly, Darwin didn't necessarily consider religion and science at odds with each other. After all, a God that could create a few simple life forms that were capable of evolving into such complex creatures was pretty amazing. Personally, I don't believe we can put the Creator God into our human box, fully understood by puny man, high IQ or not. I choose to accept Him at His word about creation.
No, sorry, evolution is not fact. It still remains theory. Granted, I don't know all the official scientific terms, but I know that it has not been proven that man has evolved from a simplistic form to an apelike creature to a man. There has been no actual evidence of that. Sorry, can't agree with you that there are only small details that haven't been worked out. Check out websites like creationmoments.com or answersingenesis.org if you want to debate extraordinary creation examples that just don't follow the rules of evolution. The kind of evolving that has taken place and is self-evident is more of an adaptation because of environmental conditions, like dark skin and wide nostrils in hot sunny climates.
You are wrong. YOU consider the Bible a myth, but it makes no real sense that the early historically proven disciples of Christ, written about by Josephus and other historians, would have died for a known myth. They were eye witnesses and they knew the truth and died for their beliefs. That's indisputable. And there is another proof that you cannot understand because you have never known it and that is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that is the Spirit of truth and teaches us all things (John Chapters 14 and 15). Don't try to argue something you cannot know. Because you can't comprehend it, you think it foolish, but God says He has made foolish the wisdom of the world and has chosen the foolish things to confound the wise (1 Corinthians Chap. 1).
I'm afraid you're wrong: Isaiah 40:22 says "He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers."
We are all servants of the Lord whether we believe in Him or not. We carry out His plans and His will whether we always know it or not. God used "his servant" Nebuchadnezzar for His purposes; He used a donkey for His purposes. He used one group of people to bring His judgment on another group of people, and then could use yet another to bring judgment on the second group if they deserved it! The Israelites were God's chosen people and yes, He often worked through them to accomplish His will to destroy the wicked. How do you know this doesn't happen now? I believe it is possible that God used us to remove the evil regime of Saddam Hussein. That is NOT to say we are righteous and better than he was. I also believe God will be bringing judgment on us for all the innocent babies we kill every year and the rampant immorality. It may be by war; it may be financial ruin from within, but it will probably happen if we don't change our wicked ways. One other thing to remember is that the end of life here on earth is not the end. If the end of life here is to be with Christ, then when God takes a seemingly innocent life to be with Him "in paradise", that's not a bad thing. Isaiah 57:1 says "The righteous pass away; the godly often die before their time. And no one seems to care or wonder why. No one seems to understand that God is protecting them from the evil to come." So countless stories of a seemingly "cruel" God killing people doesn't have the same effect for me as it does for you because if they are innocent and saved, they go to be with Him.
Once again you speak of things you know nothing about. There ARE miracles being performed today and I have witnessed them. Many may seem like coincidences to those looking in from the outside, but there are others like the complete and total healing of a man from our church planning to go in the next day for his facial surgery to remove the cancer. He had seen multiple doctors and the x-rays to prove his tumors existed. The church prayed for him the day before surgery. Surgery day came and the surgeon took another x-ray to determine exactly where his cuts would be made, and there was no cancer. He took more x-rays, no cancer. He has three x-rays of the different views of the tumors and three x-rays with it completely gone. Sounds like God still in action to me!
It's interesting, you pick out a god you like and someone else picks out a god that suits him. You think everyone's god takes care of his own? I'm afraid there's only one true God and in the end you WILL know Him. In the end every knee will bow to Him, but it will be too late, then. And for that, I am truly sorry. I have to say I am honestly not impressed by your high IQ. I think it hinders you. Your faith is in yourself and what you believe to be true, as if our sinful human selves could really know truth. The truth I know to be true comes from the Holy Spirit; it comes not from me. That's something you cannot understand because you have not known the Holy Spirit, so you shouldn't speak of those things you don't know. "The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned." (1 Cor 2:14).
Funny you should mention China as it has the largest and fastest growing underground Christian church in the world!! So even being born there, people can come to know Christ. God says if we call out to Him with sincere hearts, He'll answer.
You consider it blah-blah-blah and I KNOW it to be true. Somehow I don't believe you can feel the certainty in your heart that I have in mine because yours is based on nothing really solid. It's based on you and your knowledge and how is it different from another who chooses what's right for him? How can all views be right and true? They can't! There is only one truth and that is from the One who IS truth! I know you can't understand and therefore there is really nothing else to talk about. You asked how I could believe what I do and I hope I have at least partially explained it for you.
Naavee gunner - I agree with your idea about god starting the Universe with the BB and letting it evolve...that's exactly what I believe.
Seekyetruth - I've read a lot of Darwin's work and I NEVER saw anything where he doubted his "theory" (fact), one iota, show me where he said that.
Sorry, but evolution is a fact. It's just so utterly OBVIOUS to anyone who take the time to really look at it.
And sorry, I won't visit the crackpot websites you listed because that's all they are. Non-scientists trying to promote creationism by talking agains evolution. It's just silly nonsense of course.
You are the one speaking of things about which you know nothing. You obviously know nothing about science or evolution. Yet you make sweeping proclaimations. We used to call people like that a "know-it-all". They don't know a thing about what they're talking about.
You STILL won't answer about Numbers:31 eh...I'm not surprised.
Intelligence is not a hindrance, it's a gift and it's why I find old myths ridiculous.
When I was a member of Mensa I participated in a survey. They surveyed the general public, Mensa members and Intertel members (intertel is a club of people int the top ONE percent IQ)
One of the questions on the survey was "Do you believe in any religion"
87% of the general public ansered yes, 23% of Mensa members answered yes, but only 2% of Intertel members answered yes. That should tell you something.
I won't bother you any more, the reason I posted in the first place was I'm just so sick of seeing ignorant sites like this. People claiming to "know" the "truth" (Christianity). Sorry that's not "truth" it's ignorant superstitious nonsense. Science is the truth.
But I know you'll continue to wallow in your fairytale world and nothing I can say will change it. Nice talkin' to ya.
Okay, I won't argue any more of your points either, but I did want to say that I did answer your question about Numbers 31. I spoke in generalities, so I guess you didn't get what I meant. I said God did and does indeed use His people or anyone He chooses to fulfill His purposes, which in that case, was to remove a wicked group of people.
And one more point that I can't help but make is that while YES, I agree, intelligence is a wonderful gift, but you proved one of my points by your comment that the higher the intelligence the less likely to believe in any religion. Just as the Bible says, the intelligent puts faith in his own intelligence, becomes wise in his own eyes, and it IS a hindrance because then he cannot understand the things of the Spirit. As age-old as the garden of Eden, they believe they can be as gods, they can know the mind of God.
Sort of like as you said to me, I know you will continue to trust in your intelligence, and nothing I can say will change that. But thanks for the dialogue and the chance for me to practice my apologetics. :-)
Sorry, I have to reply to that...
So you think it's okay that your god orders the murder and enslavement of thousands of children???? Nice guy your god...
The god I believe in isn't cruel. Sorry about yours.
Like I said befre, think about how something like that would go over today. I can see it now, the Israelis say "Oh...yeah, well we did kill and enslave thousands of Palestinian kids, but it's okay...God told us to do it!" What is wrong with people that they not only believe such idiocy but they actually accept it????
Okay, and I'm going to have to answer this one. That is the problem with the world today. Everyone wants to do what he wants with no consequences. You want to believe in a god who has no authority and no judgment and that makes you feel good. What's right and true for you is truth and something else that feels good for the next guy is right and true, too, right? Yeah, right!
Well, you know what? The truth isn't always politically correct. As a matter of fact, it almost never is! The Israelites were God's chosen people and had a special call to be an instrument of His judgment. Under God's authority, He brought judgment against the Midianites for their sexual immorality and idolatry. It is certainly different now in that God doesn't speak directly to us as He did in the Old Testament, so I don't guess your scenario would play out. He tells us in the New Testament that vengeance is His, and He will take care of it and it may not be in this lifetime.
The one and only true God I believe in is good and patient and loving and provides the ONLY way to eternal life and it is a very easy way if you don't let the big EGO get in the way! BUT He doesn't abide sin and can't be in its presence. That's something our puny human brains can't understand and don't like, but that doesn't make it less true just because we don't like it. But that's why He provided a way for our sins to be covered. And that's the truth of it even if it doesn't suit your idea of PCness. He said His way would be a stumbling block. He confounds the wise with foolish things! Things they cannot understand, but sorry, you can't change the facts just because you don't believe them. So I guess that's that. You won't believe it and I'll never not believe it.
The "truth" is not to be found in old archaic myths written by primitive people. It's not "gods word" it's just old myths. You live in a fairytale world.
You said: "it is certainly different now that god doesn't speak to us". Ha, he never did! It's just old myths. If those kind of things happened then, they would be happening now. You know in your subconcious that I'm right, but the brainwashing you received ever since childhood is too strong for your brain to overcome. It's just old myths!!! Get used to it. THAT's the truth. You can quote your Blah Blah Blah Oooga booga nonsense forever but it doesn't mean a thing. No amout of belief makes something a fact. Science deals in facts, with undeniable EVIDENCE. You deal in old myths and superstions from thousands of years ago.
Like I said before if you'd been born in India, you would believe JUST as strongly in Hinduism. Do you deny that??? You know it's true.
I'm not going to argue your beliefs any more, but don't try to tell me what I believe in my subconscious. I KNOW the truth and one day you will, too, because one day EVERY knee will bow, and no amount of disbelief changes that fact. PERIOD.
I don't pretend to know any ultimate "truth". I do know what is NOT true and that's old myths written thousands of years ago by primitive ignorant people. That is definitely NOT true.
I don't think the ultimate being of the universe wants people to bow down on their knees and worship him. That would be an insult to such a being to think he would want that. That's what Christianity is, an insult to my intelligence and to the ultimate intelligence of the universe.
You don't KNOW anything. You don't even know what you're talking about. Who do you think you are to say you KNOW the truth. How arrogant and pretentious. And this site....you make all kinds of proclaimations about "GOD's PLAN" who do you think you are??? Do you have a degree in theology? Are you an ordained minister??? I think not. You're just an ignorant, arrogant person parroting a millenia old book of myths and superstions that mean absolutely NOTHING.
I've at least read the bible from cover to cover. Have you read Darwin's "Origin of Species"? Of course you haven't. Have you read ANY scientic publication?? Have you even read any other religious texts from other religions?? Of course you haven't.
Again, if you'd been born in India you would believe just as strongly in Hinduism, if you'd been born in China you'd believe just as strongly in Bhuddism, it's the contitioning an brainwashing from birth, nothing more. But I can't expect people with low IQ's who don't think for themselves to understand that. When you let a millenia old book of myths do your thinking for you, there's really no hope of you ever climbing out of your fantasy world.
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